Thursday, February 18, 2010

More soup! It's a good day!

I feel like I've been in hibernation for the last few weeks. Truly! I'm on activity time-out until the Spring. I leave for work when it's dark outside, and I leave from work when it's dark outside. At work, we are still dealing with the aftershocks of the re-org that took place at the end of last year. Things are still feeling pretty unsettled and the new roles have not been completely defined yet. This all translates into A LOT OF STRESS! Throw in a little Seasonal Affective Disorder, a dash of yucky weather and a pinch of normal down time, and you now have the recipe for "What ails Maria?" I give this recipe a thumbs down!

So how am I coping? With the help of some good ol' reliables: A little re-reading of old favorites (Bonjour, D'Artagnan, mon ami!), a lot of sleeping, and . . . soup!!!!

Over the years, I've made many versions of this soup. Last year, I had a bit of a mishap when I tried making Cassoulet (see blog entry for Feb. 16, 2009) and my crockpot exploded! This time I cooked the beans in the pressure cooker (cooking beans is always an adventure at our house), added pancetta (Italian bacon), Italian parsley and, of course, butternut squash. Now this recipe gets a thumbs up!
I haven't run out of soup recipes yet, thank goodness, because, unfortunately, winter is not over yet. And thank goodness also that my husband happens to like soup . . . almost as much as I do!

GOOD NEWS UPDATE! In November, I blogged about the layoffs at work and I mentioned two co-workers that had serious medical conditions and were about to lose their jobs. Well, both co-workers have found new positions within the company and were able to transition to the new jobs without interruption of their benefits! And, as an added bonus, their health has stabilized and they are doing much, much better! Oh, it's a good day!

That soup looks delicious - but I'll have to look for it in a can - cooking beans is too much bother. I can remember leaving for work in dark, returning home in dark, and after dinner, cleaning up, homework, and eventually getting kids to bed - finally getting to sit down - in dark. I am glad to read that things worked out for your co-workers. As an up side - the sun came up earlier today - so we are getting closer to Spring - yippee!